Josefin’s Waltz by Roger Tallroth

The wildly popular contra dance band Swallowtail (based in Massachusetts) included it on their recording "After the Dance." The liner notes say "Swedish guitarist Roger Tallroth composed this beautiful waltz for his niece’s christening."

I also heard it played by Tallroth and his group (sorry, I don’t recall the name) on the Prairie Home Companion radio show.

Josephine’s Waltz

Sheet Music

The sheet music for this tune is very very wrong. All note values need to be twice as long and the measure markings adjusted accordingly. Is there a way to correct this or upload corrected sheet music?

😛 ~ right you are, as the transcriptions clearly show. Still, if I was having to work with a dance that needed a measured count, I’d have to swing things differently to fit say 32 bars. But as an open couple dance, no problem… 😎

Josefin’s Waltz

The way it is written above in Sheet Music is wrong, surely? Can someone post a ‘correct’ version, please? Thank you. Forgive me if I don’t quite understand why there are not 3 beats to the bar, as there should be.

Re: Josefin’s

Re: Josefin’s

I feel we should respect Tallroth’s original basic version of this tune (which you can hear and see him play with Väsen at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZrfjHeFEr0). This means: 1) both A & B parts are repeated; 2) the last bar of the first time through A descends, leading back to the first pitch again (A-G-E if it’s played in G); 3) and two bars before the end of part A, it’s not E-F#-G but D-F#-G. Of course, then they (in all their concerts, and on the album "Trio") vary it after that first AABB, so we can all have fun with it too. - Spelling too: Tallroth spells it "Johsefins Dopvals".

Re: Josefin’s

Josefin’s, X:7

Here’s a two-part arrangement by The Rude Mechanicals.

One pernickety observation: the first two settings above have an error in bar 14: the first note should be one tone above the preceding one (D if you’re playing in G) not a third above. It’s one of those details of phrasing that matters to us Väsen fans.

Re: Josefin’s

For some reason, the notation doesn’t show up until after the piece has been posted, so I didn’t realise that the accompanying part is set out in lines 6 - 10 of the X:7 MS above, rather than as a parallel stave. Also the three dotted minims at the end were written as a chord but appear here as separate notes. Also, it’s meant to be in 3/8 but that doesn’t seem to be an option if something’s listed as a waltz, so it’s given in 3/4.

Re: Josefin’s

Josefin’s, X:8

It was Catriona MacDonald who taught us this tune many moons ago. Some time later, somebody asked me for a second fiddle part so I wrote one to go underneath the tune. I’ve used Bazza’s setting as a blueprint and altered where necessary for our harmonically simpler arrangement. Thanks Bazza.

Re: Josefin’s

Must try that! Often play the tune. Dare I say I prefer your chord structure: too many minors for my liking/capabilities in X7. (Sorry Bazza, but that’s at least partly owing to my limitations of available chords in my B/C box!)
One bugbear is bar 15: so many people hereabouts play E F# G instead of D F#G. I transcribed it from the Vasen video where it is definitely (in key of F) C E F, which, transposed to G = D F#G.